


Better Late than Never

by Lirillith



Series: Win Some, Lose Some [2]
Category: Tiger & Bunny
Genre: Christmas, Episode Related, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-26
Updated: 2011-11-26
Packaged: 2017-10-26 14:23:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/284297
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lirillith/pseuds/Lirillith
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set during the episode 25 timeskip. Kotetsu and Barnaby get their chance to talk before Kotetsu leaves Stern Bild.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Better Late than Never

    Barnaby had been able to keep busy for the past two days, ferrying various Kaburagis between the hospital, the bus station, and a hotel.  Kotetsu's mother and his older brother had come to town to retrieve Kaede and check on Kotetsu, and Barnaby was relieved about their presence for several reasons.  For one, Kotetsu could stop worrying about where Kaede would stay, how to get her safely back home, and the rest.  For another, Barnaby knew exactly how to behave as he took on the responsibility of taking them where they needed to go, answering their questions, talking to them about Kotetsu.  It could have been awkward, talking to the man's family so soon after the changes their relationship had gone through, but he just slipped into the role he'd always played for fans and interviewers.  Possibly the last time he ever would.  No, that might not be strictly true - he might have to give a final press conference, depending on Apollon's willingness to manage his exit - but close enough. 

    At night, he'd go back to his apartment and fall into bed, and the past two days he'd been tired enough to sleep.  But now he'd seen Kotetsu's family off at the station, and he was alone in his car.  He turned the key in the ignition, and then he just sat there, his mind a blank.  Where had he intended to go after this?  He couldn't remember.  His appointment at Apollon, to formally tender his resignation, wasn't for another few hours.  Kotetsu wasn't due to be discharged until the next day.  Where was he going to go, and what was he going to do?  Once he'd broken ties with Apollon, and Kotetsu had gone back to live with his family, what was he going to do? 

    He didn't know how long he sat there before his phone rang.  He glanced hopefully at the screen, but it wasn't Kotetsu.  It was Rock Bison.  He'd entered all the other heroes into his phone, but none had called him until now.  Rock Bison was a friend of Kotetsu's, though.  He felt his heart drop into his stomach as he answered. 

    "Hello?"

    "Bunny!  I wasn't sure if you'd be free yet."

    _Oh thank God._   "Your family is on their way back home.  Why are you using Rock Bison's phone?"

    "Mine's still not working.  Antonio's taking me back to my car."

    "Are you sure you're okay to drive?"

    "You worry too much!  Mind if I drop in for dinner?  I kind of packed up my whole kitchen."

    Not that he'd cooked much to begin with.  "Of course I don't mind.  Come over whenever you want."

* * *

    By the time he arrived, Barnaby's retirement was official.  As he poured him Legend cola, Kotetsu explained about the fate of his phone, shut down by Maverick.  "I figure I'll just buy a new one once I move back to Mom's place, with a local area code and everything."

    "So you're moving back in with your mother?"

    "Yeah.  Not totally thrilled about it, but Kaede's settled there."  Kotetsu hesitated for a moment, then added, "I kinda want to ask you what's the last thing you remember, but I dunno if you want to talk about it or not.  Because if you don't, I am completely happy talking about Kaede for a solid hour."

    "You usually are," Barnaby agreed.  "I think..."  He closed his eyes for a moment, prodding his memory warily.  "You mean before he separated us, right?"

    "Right," Kotetsu said, then, abruptly, "Maybe it's better if you don't."

    "Better now than while I'm in the middle of cooking."

    "Don't push yourself too hard, Bunny."

    "I remember when my memory turned on me, and you suggested we revisit that last day.  And... we fought, didn't we?"

    "You, um, kinda found out about me planning to retire.  In the worst possible way."

    "That might have been a good time to tell me about your powers."

    "I can see that _now_..."

    "When I was in Maverick's office, Aunt Samantha called."  He closed his eyes, calling her face to mind.  Maverick had murdered her, too, and he'd never had the chance to say goodbye to her.  "She showed me a picture..."  He stopped, feeling a hand on his.  Kotetsu was leaning over him.  His own hands, under Kotetsu's, were clenched together so tightly the knuckles were white.  "She was the one with me that day.  Not Maverick.  That's why he killed her.  He was trying to get rid of you and her at the same time, so he'd get rid of anyone who was close to me, and anyone who knew Jake wasn't the killer."

    "Well, I may not have been there in his office... wait, I did find your pin there.  So I know you went to his office, and what you and I did together checks out."

    "My pin?"

    "Those cool matching pins I got us!"

    "Ah.  Yes.  The cool ones."

    Kotetsu, to his surprise, grinned at him.  "So you're feeling good enough to be sarcastic." 

    Barnaby managed a wan smile.  "At least I have real memories for that day." 

    "I'm sorry about Ms. Samantha," Kotetsu said, serious again, fidgeting with his glass.  "She seemed like a nice lady."

    "She was.  Even after my parents died and she didn't have any links to my family anymore, she kept in touch, baked me a cake every year for my birthday..."  He felt tears starting in his eyes, and removed his glasses to swipe at them. 

    Kotetsu's voice was softer than Barnaby had ever heard it.  "I'm... all you've got left."

    "I didn't want to say it," he admitted.  "It's not something that should change your plans.  Kaede needs you, too."

    "Maybe you shouldn't retire, Bunny.  Keep something you're familiar with."

    "No.  Even if you weren't retiring..."

    "That's right.  Sorry." 

    "I have no idea who I'd be if it weren't for him.  Would I have grown up to be a scientist like my parents?"

    "You're still young," Kotetsu pointed out.  "If you want to go back to school, this is your chance.  Or travel!  I remember that interview where you were saying you might travel if you had time off, but then you said you'd probably just train instead.  Now you have no reason to train."

    "Where would I go?  I don't even know what my own preferences are.  Everything about me has his influence." 

    "Go to Japan.  That comes from me." 

    "...you realize I don't speak the language."

    "Like you speak Italian, either?"

    "I studied it in high school.  I could pick it back up after a short refresher course."

    "Okay, take me with you to Japan.  I can read the train schedules.  Mostly.  And then when we come back, Kaede will hug me to get my powers, and then beat me up with them." 

    Barnaby smiled in spite of himself.  "I'll go start the rice."

* * *

    He had to exile Kotetsu from the kitchen when he got fed up with the commentary - "I always stir it with chopsticks, but sure, I guess a wooden spoon works too."  What else had Kotetsu used when he came over here?  He heard the TV turn on in the next room, and some mutterings from Kotetsu, who seemed to be stymied by Barnaby's remote control settings.  As he cooked, with Kotetsu's channel-surfing for accompaniment, he thought back to the hospital room.  _We'll talk about it then,_ he'd said, and Kotetsu had called it _our future._   For months - the better part of a year - he'd thought he was in unrequited love with his straight partner.  He'd found it relatively easy to accept that.  Kotetsu's friendship was too valuable to Barnaby for him to risk it by confessing feelings Kotetsu would never return.  The idea that Kotetsu could, in fact, return those feelings... that was different.  That was really kind of frightening, in the way unrequited feelings had never been.

    Part of him wanted to wrap himself bodily around Kotetsu and never, ever let go.  Another part wasn't entirely sure this had all been a good idea.  He should never have kissed Kotetsu.  He'd never been in a real relationship - or rather, he didn't remember being in any real relationships.  He remembered a few casual dates, with both men and women.  Were those real?  Had he gone on any dates at all?  Or had he fallen in love, and had the memory wiped from him by Maverick?  He thought of himself as too focused on his goal to have interest in, or time for, a significant other.  But now he wondered.  Maybe Maverick had wanted to keep him exclusively focused on his mission as part of a plan to make him a star hero.  Maybe some past boyfriend had started to influence him, and Mr. Maverick, having no use for a would-be painter or political activist or engineer, had wiped the relationship from his mind.  What else had he wiped out?

    He couldn't drive himself crazy thinking about that.  He'd never know.  He tried to push the thoughts down.  He was effectively completely inexperienced on this front.  So here he was: wanting to cling to Kotetsu, scared of what a relationship would mean, and extremely horny.  The more he thought about it, the more it seemed like he might very well have avoided relationships willingly, without any outside interference.  They seemed to be very distracting, and potentially a lot of trouble.  Back when he had a mission, those would have been major drawbacks.

    The rice was easy.  He mounded it onto two plates, and brought them into the living room.  He'd actually pulled the desk chair from his bedroom into the living room shortly after Kotetsu had called, and as he seated himself, Kotetsu needled him - "Some people have couches, you know."  He noticed his partner had already turned off the TV. 

    "Couches they cover in empty bottles?"

    "I've cleaned up since then!  I wasn't expecting guests that time.  Hey, this is really good."

    "I'm glad," Barnaby said, trying it himself.  It was fairly tasty.  He couldn't quite understand Kotetsu's fixation, but then again, you could vary your ingredients.  If you were going to learn to cook one thing, he supposed this was versatile. 

    "Yep, this is excellent.  Thanks, Bunny, this hits the spot."

    As they ate, and Kotetsu continued to praise the rice, Barnaby realized he had to do something.  Perhaps it wasn't quite an elephant in the room, but it was something... maybe a large dog.  Or a tiger.  He was preoccupied with the topic, anyway, even if Kotetsu wasn't. 

    He lowered his spoon to his plate, his plate to his knees, cleared his throat, and made himself say, in a tone that sounded much more like the one he used for interviews than he'd expected, "It sounds like you reached the same conclusion I did about a relationship."

    "...because of the rice?"

    "Kotetsu..."

    "Yeah, you're probably right."  Kotetsu seemed a bit diffident, too.  It must have been on his mind; he didn't seem at all surprised by the abrupt change in subject.  "I was trying to think how to say it without making it sound like, I dunno, 'it's not you, it's me.'" 

    "Well, it _is_ me."

    "I'm not touching that, " Kotetsu said with a half-smile.  "I just meant... you've gone through a lot.  You don't want to fight with me about squeezing the toothpaste tube in the middle while you're dealing with that."

    "Why would you squeeze the toothpaste tube in the middle?"

    "I just do!  And I knew you wouldn't."

    "What possible purpose..."

    "Bunny.  We can argue about it when we're actually sharing a bathroom."  Kotetsu's tone changed.  "I've been there.  A serious relationship means some changes even if you both know exactly who you are.  Living together means more.  A lot more.  If you moved out to Oriental Town with me... no matter what I said when I was drugged up, it'd probably be a bad idea.  Especially moving in with my mom and Kaede at the same time."

    "It's better for me to sort out my own identity, first," Barnaby agreed, trying not to sound sad.  He'd kind of been hoping Kotetsu would sweep away all his doubts.  Make the decision for him.  He supposed he had, though.

    "And then when you feel like you have that handled, you call me.  First thing."  Barnaby nodded.  He wanted to say _I'm going to miss you_ , but the words stuck in his throat.  "You can call me before that, too!" Kotetsu added.  "Or visit.  Both!"

    "I know." 

    "You better.  I don't want you out here with no support... You can talk to any of the other heroes too, you know.  They were all worried about you when you went missing.  They, uh, kind of blamed me for it."  Barnaby nodded absently.  He was friendly enough with all of their colleagues - rivals - but he couldn't envision confiding in anyone else.  "Fire Emblem especially.  Huh, maybe I don't want you spending too much time with him and his gropey hands... Anyway, I'll be out here at least in the spring.  Kaede made me promise to take her to amusment parks over her spring break." 

    "Parks?  How many are there?"

    "Four," Kotetsu sighed.  "She's too young to need to rest on her vacations.  Hey, you ever been to any of the amusement parks here?"

    "Not to my knowledge."  He regretted the wording as soon as he spoke.  He thought he saw Kotetsu wince, but he covered it well.

    "Well, there you go.  We'll have to fix that.  Are you prone to motion sickness?"

    "I'm not sure I like where this is going."

   

    They ate their rice.  They talked about plans for the next few months.  Kotetsu kept glancing out the window and commenting admiringly on the view.  But eventually, as the lights of the city began to turn on and the sky to darken, Kotetsu began to stir restlessly.  "You need to get an early start tomorrow, don't you?" Barnaby finally asked, since Kotetsu seemed to be reluctant to say anything. 

    "Yeah, afraid so."  Kotetsu stood, and stretched.  "I'll call you when I reach my mom's place, okay?"

    "All right," Barnaby agreed.  He saw Kotetsu move toward him, and he wondered if he should stand, but instead he just closed his eyes as Kotetsu brushed a light kiss against his lips.  "Night, Bunny," Kotetsu said, and Barnaby mumbled something in response.  He thought about reaching out, grabbing Kotetsu, demanding a better good-bye kiss than that, but the door closed before he could even think of what he'd say.  It was for the best.  They'd see each other soon enough.

    Someday, he vowed, he'd be clean-shaven when he and Kotetsu kissed.

* * *

    The next morning, he awakened to a ringing phone, and he'd answered it before he remembered that he was retired.  "Bunny!" Kotetsu greeted him.  "I forgot something."

    "You... forgot something."  He rolled onto his back, rubbing his eyes with one hand. 

    "Yeah, I need to give you something.  I'm dropping by your place, okay?  See you in about ten minutes!" 

    That would give him time to shave, at least. 

    He was still pulling on his shirt when he heard Kotetsu knock.  "I forgot to give you this," Kotetsu greeted him without preamble when he opened the door.

    "What is it?" Barnaby asked.  It looked about the size of a shoebox, and it was wrapped in paper with a Christmas-tree print.

    "Your Christmas present!"

    "I can see _that_ ," Barnaby began.  "But--"

    "It's supposed to be a surprise!" Kotetsu said, then his expression softened.  "I know you have plenty of reasons not to like Christmas, and this isn't gonna change your mind.  But I still want to give you something."  Barnaby accepted the package gingerly.  It was lightweight, but clearly held something with some mass.  "Don't open it till the 25th, okay?"

    Barnaby looked at the box, then at Kotetsu.  "I didn't get you anything."

    "Don't worry about it.  Kaede said I'm cool!  What else could I want for Christmas?" 

    Barnaby smiled ruefully.  "I suppose so."

    "So... that's what I forgot.  I wanted to make sure you had your present.  And, you know, say goodbye the right way."  He reached out, and Barnaby moved into his arms, trying not to hit him with the box.  He buried his face in Kotetsu's shoulder, inhaling his faint, citrusy scent. 

    "I'm glad you could see there was something lacking," Barnaby said, though it didn't come out sounding as acerbic as he'd intended.  Maybe that was for the best.

    "Give me a break, I'm rusty at this," Kotetsu retorted.  Barnaby felt the arms around him tighten.  "Are you gonna be okay?"

    "I've lived alone since I moved out of the Academy dorms," he said. 

    "You know full well what I meant," Kotetsu chided, pulling back.

    Barnaby sighed.  "I don't know.  I hope so.  There's only one way to find out, isn't there?"

    "Promise you'll call me if you're.... I don't know, if you're lonely, or--"

    "I promise I'll call you."

    "Okay."  Kotetsu seemed to hesitate, but his eyes were half-closed, and that was enough to let Barnaby close the distance.  It was easier to kiss him this time than it had been the first time, and harder to stop, but Kotetsu pulled away, and they mumbled through further goodbyes, and Barnaby closed the door behind him.  At least this time he was clean-shaven, he reflected, as he placed the box on the table by his laptop.  He didn't try very hard to restrain himself from going over to the window to watch Kotetsu's car pull away. 

    He felt less foolish when Kotetsu looked up in the direction of his window and waved. 


End file.
